The Second Child
by Aruchyan
Summary: In a world where children are on the streets, the skies are forever darkened with smoke, and bodies and garbage are everywhere, a 'second child' shall attempt his revenge on the world. Only the angels can save the planet from utter destruction...
1. Chapter 1

Hello! Birdy's here with another Digimon fanfic! I hope you like it! I thought this one up because I noticed how almost all of the Digi-destined crew, at least the 02 gang, are second children. So I thought, why not make something out of that fact? So, here it is!

Disclaimer- I don't own Digimon, capiche?

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**_The Second Children_**

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"_In the world is a second child, one with a dark heart. The Second Child shall bring calamity and chaos to the planet, striking fear into the hearts of many. War will pit man against children. As the moon wanes for the second time, angels will descend on the battlefield, but only if they so choose to. Until then, the fate of the world rests in their hands…"_

Thus reads the Prophecy Stone, a giant stone situated at the center of the world. A powerful woman psychic, her name unknown, wrote her prophecy onto the rock a day before she died. Times were peaceful, until then.

The prediction cast the world into a state of disarray. The leader of the world, knowing the psychic's words were always true, feared the prediction's words. He immediately demanded all parents to abandon all but their first child and not to bear anymore, in an attempt to prevent the prophecy from coming to fruition. The children were killed. When any parents refused, they and their children were killed and their homes were burned. The ground was littered with bodies, remains of fires gone out of control, and blood.

A few men and women managed to escape execution and constructed many massive and deadly bombs. When they went off, they decimated half of the largest continent in the world. Millions died in a minute. The bombs and the many fires put such a large amount of smoke in the air that one was unable to see the stars at night. No one could tell when the sun shined, the haze was so thick. Plants and animals died due to the poor air quality.

A little while later, another man came into power. He also feared the prophecy, but dealt with it in a different manner. All the second children that had survived the holocaust were found and branded with an 'S' on their cheek. If one of these children was found committing a crime, the punishment was death. They were then put out on the streets. Most did not have their parents. Those that did were often unwanted, didn't have a place to live anymore, or couldn't find them. Many had to search for them. Most children were alone in a harsh world…

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A boy with an 'S' imprinted on his cheek walked up to a ruined house. Tears dripped down his cheeks as he examined his former home. They came in full force when he saw the inside. On the floor, were two people, their bodies decaying, but still somewhat recognizable. A boy was not too far away, also dead.

"Kaa-san, Tou-san, Nii-san…" he murmured. His face contorted in rage. "They'll all pay for this." Then, he screamed.

--

Eight years after what became known as "The Child Annihilation," the planet was still dark. No one was able to clean up the mess the Annihilation had done. Governments gave money to families to rebuild their lives, built houses, and tried to make life as pleasant as possible for families. Though often enough, there were no more than three people in those families.

Children were still on the streets. Many formed their own groups. Those in the group supported each other. Others, though, were on their own. Somehow, they managed.

One such child is Takeru. Blond, blue-eyed, and tall for his twelve years, he managed to withstand the harsh life that was normal for a second child. Also, those that met him will vouch for his rather positive attitude, a trait that is handy for mentally surviving his life.

That day was like most days, wake up and go to one of the few soup kitchens for breakfast. He tried not to go that often, for he knew that places that helped children such as himself didn't receive all that much funding. So, whenever he did, he helped out in exchange.

Every once in a while they gave him a little money along with the meal. He gratefully accepted and put it in a small sack he had in his makeshift home. It was really just a tent made out of sheets of metal and a large box he had discovered. In it, he had a small blanket and a few random things he found while walking around and looking in piles of things in front of houses and in wreckage left over from the Annihilation.

Life was pleasant for Takeru. He had a roof over his head, a little money for a rainy day, and though he was often hungry, he didn't mind.

So, when he left the soup kitchen with a small amount of money in his hand, he had a bright smile on his face, a look that seemed to be permanently plastered on his face, or at least variations of it. He had almost reached his home when he heard a noise behind him.

His smile was still on his face, but he was tense. "Come out, whoever you are," he called quietly without looking behind him.

"Great, now he found us. Nice going, Daisuke," a girl's voice yelled.

"Maybe you were breathing too hard. You're loud enough as it is," another voice shouted.

"You're both too loud!" a third voice exclaimed quietly, though Takeru could still hear it. The voice was unmistakably female.

"Are you three coming out or do I have to drag you all out?" Takeru said, turning around. He noticed three shadows in the bushes a little ways away. Slowly and carefully, he started moving towards them.

"What do we do?" the second voice asked frantically.

"Shut up, idiot! Maybe he won't notice us," the first girl said.

"Think again," Takeru said, hovering over them. The three of them screamed.

"Augh, you all are so loud," he said playfully. "Now, get out of there."

The three obeyed. He quickly looked them all over. The boy was a little shorter than he was with dark, messy hair. He had a pair of cracked goggles on his head. He was wearing a tattered blue jacket, a red shirt with ripped sleeves, and jeans with holes in them. His shoes were in very good order, though. His brown eyes brought a certain fire to his face.

One of the girls had big brown eyes behind her large glasses and long, purple hair pulled back with a dirty bandana. She was taller than the boy named Daisuke, but she was also shorter than Takeru. She had on a simple shirt and skirt, though the shirt had a large hole on the side. She wasn't wearing any shoes.

The final person of the trio was a brunette with bright, crimson eyes. She was shorter than the others by at least an inch, and half a head shorter than Takeru. She was wearing a yellow sundress. She also had a pink handkerchief and a whistle on a pink string around her neck. The dress was too big and had a rip at the end, but was in decent condition. Her boots were worn, the left sole was coming off of the shoe, but they weren't too bad.

She, as well as the other two, was branded as a 'Second Child.'

Meanwhile, they analyzed him as well. They took in his blond hair, sparkling eyes, tall stature and lean physique. His brown shirt and khaki pants had seen better days, and he was barefoot. The 'S' on his cheek told the threesome that he was like them, a Second Child. His face sported a content smile and dancing cerulean orbs.

"He looks nice, Miyako," the brunette said, smiling.

"Don't judge a book by its cover, Hikari-chan," Daisuke said, scanning over Takeru a second time. "By the way, I disagree with our decision. I don't trust him."

"Well, let's just ask, Daisuke. You've seen how he works. He's obviously good at this," the other girl, Miyako, declared.

"Fine," Daisuke grumbled. He crossed his arms and didn't say another word.

"So what's this all about? I've seen you guys following me for the past few days. What do you want?" Takeru inquired.

"What? You knew we were there?" Miyako exclaimed in disbelief. "I thought we were hidden completely!"

"I don't think so. You guys were so obvious I had to stop myself from laughing and dragging you out to face me. Though you never came this far before, Miyako-san," he answered, his smile growing wider.

Miyako gasped. "Not only did he notice us in our perfect hiding places, but he knows my name too! Are you a psychic?"

"Nope. Just a normal kid that notices these things. Besides, your friend Hikari-san said your name not too long ago. And before you ask, you were the one that said Hikari san's name, as well as Daisuke-san's," he said coolly, the smile never leaving his face. His hands in his pockets, he continued, "So, I ask again. What do you guys want?"

Miyako wasn't convinced. She started thinking he was a psychic alien, bent on destroying this godforsaken planet.

"Well," Hikari began, seeing as Daisuke refused to talk to him and Miyako was daydreaming, "we've seen how, despite the simple fact that you are a Second Child, you are living on your own, have a rather tidy sum of money stowed away, and always have a smile on your face. So, we want to know how you do it."

"How I do it? Is that all?" Takeru asked.

"Well, we also want to know something else," Hikari continued.

"Oh? And what's that?" he replied lightheartedly.

"We were wondering if you would…" She trailed off nervously.

"What?"

"Will you join our group?"

--

I kinda like the always smiling Takeru, don't you? I put Hikari in a grown up version of her outfit from the first adventure, since I kinda doubt a kid with no money is going to find a pink shirt and pink gloves in the trash. I did variations of the other outfits too. In any case, this is something I thought up randomly, but I like how it's turning out so far. I'll update soon!

-Birdy


	2. Chapter 2

Birdy here. Sorry it took so long to update. Anyhoo, here's chapter two of "The Second Children." Enjoy!

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"Join your group? Why do you want me to join?" Takeru asked quietly.

"You're living well, for a loner. Most loners end up having to steal. Since stealing is a crime, they usually end up captured and sentenced to death, no questions asked. So, finding a loner that can actually take care of himself, not to mention smile all day, we couldn't pass you up," Hikari answered matter-of-factly.

"Is it really that hard to survive alone?" Takeru said somewhat arrogantly.

"Apparently, yes. You've got a soup kitchen nearby, but others don't. They have to do things the hard way. And it seems lots of charity centers are going bankrupt and have to close down, or they're blackmailed, or they're unable to run, making it even more difficult to survive on your own. That's why everyone makes groups."

"Okay." Takeru said suddenly.

"What?" Hikari wasn't sure what he was talking about.

"I'll join your group. I've got nothing much to do with my life anyway, might as well have some friends, eh?" He flashed her a grin, which, for reasons unknown to her, made her blush.

Miyako recovered from her stupor. "Just like that?" He nodded. She smiled and quipped, "That's great!" Daisuke mumbled something incoherently.

"So, what do you guys do, anyway?"

"Not much," Miyako said. "We just try to survive. And we're looking for our families."

"Don't forget, we're also trying to figure out a way to end all the problems for Second Children like us," Daisuke joined in, tired of being quiet.

"Sounds good. I'm in. Where do you guys live?" Takeru asked.

"Just over the hill. That's how we heard of you. We saw you a week or two ago when we were taking a different route home from one of Daisuke's soccer games." With that, Miyako started walking, Daisuke and Hikari not far behind. Takeru soon followed as well.

When they reached the peak of the hill, Takeru found himself looking over a small field with an old vehicle of some sort in the center.

"Is that a car?" he asked incredulously.

"A camper, to be exact," Miyako boasted. "We found it last year. We'd been living in a ruined house not too far from here before, but that place only had part of the roof, so it was a pain when it rained. Don't know how many times we got sick. Hikari almost died from pneumonia. Luckily, there was something of a hospital for Second Children run by this teenager. Apparently, he's a Second Child too.

"Anyway, now we live in here! Since cars were outlawed ages ago, because of the pollution problem, lots of people abandoned their cars in random places. Lots of groups use them as a shelter, especially the bigger ones, like vans. We got lucky and now have a lot of space for the three of us, well, four, including you."

"I'm impressed. You guys did get lucky. Can I see inside?"

"Of course. You're part of our group now. You'll be living here, unless you like that upgraded box more than this." Miyako led him and her friends down to the camper and opened the door.

Though the camper was weathered on the outside, the inside was cozy. The furniture was in usable condition and the appliances and lights were in good working order.

Takeru did a full inspection of the grounded vehicle and said, "Very nice. It's much better than the, as you pu it, Miyako-san, "upgraded box" I live in. If we're careful, we can make this all last a very long time. Let's go back to my 'house' and get my things."

He led the way back to his living area and put most of the things he owned on a blanket and wrapped it up. Some unnecessary items were left behind for other Children to find if they looked. When he was finished, they trekked back over the hill to the camper.

"So how are we doing sleeping arrangements? There are only two beds and a pull-out bed in the sofa. Should I sleep on the floor?" the blonde said when they got inside.

"Sure, you go do that," Daisuke sneered. "I still think we're fine without him."

"Yeah, yeah. If you want to sleep on the floor, fine. If not, take Daisuke's bed. He doesn't mind." Miyako said, grinning evilly.

"Hey!" Daisuke exclaimed. "Don't make decisions without me!"

"You're vote doesn't count anyway, so why should I care whether you're in the conversation or not?"

They exchanged insults and curses back and forth for a few minutes before Takeru and Hikari broke them up. The former said he was fine with the floor. Seeing as it was late, they all went to their respective beds. Daisuke and Miyako had the bunk beds in the other room while Hikari was on the couch bed next to Takeru. According to Miyako, before Takeru had entered the group, they had decided sleeping arrangements by janken.

When the other two had left, Takeru started chuckling. "Is this how they always are?" he quietly asked Hikari.

She giggled also. "Pretty much, yeah. Once, they almost got us all arrested for disturbing the peace, they were so loud. Since then, they're a lot quieter. And they're fights are famous. Only someone from their group can split them up, in other words, me and now you. If anyone else tries to get in their way, they give them the scariest face and tell them to buzz off. If that doesn't scare them off, they usually work together to beat the guy up."

"They're so similar, personality wise. It's funny."

"Yeah, though sometimes it's kind of scary. Anyway, we need sleep. Oyasumi, Takeru-kun."

"Oyasumi, Hikari-chan."

--

"Why are we doing this? It's kind of to the extreme," a man whispered.

"If we get rid of this place, then those kids will have to steal things. Then we can start getting rid of them. The Prophecy won't come true if I have anything to say about it!" a second man explained. "No one's going to get hurt. There's no one here. And they won't know it's us. So come on. Do it."

"Okay…"

--

Takeru was woken by a sparrow that had gotten through a large hole in the window. Hikari was still asleep next to him.

"Ohayou, Tori-san," he said to the bird. It tweeted in response. He took out a loaf of bread he had gotten from the soup kitchen the day before and broke off a small piece. He put it on his hand and held it out. The bird fluttered over, pecked at it with its beak, then ate it. Takeru gave it a little more. It accepted gratefully, then hopped up to his shoulder and nuzzled his cheek. "Hey, that tickles!"

Meanwhile, Daisuke and Miyako had woken up and were watching him from the doorway to their room. "Great, he talks to birds. Sure he's not crazy?" Daisuke mumbled to Miyako.

"I think it's sweet. You could stand to be nicer to animals," she replied.

Takeru noticed them. "Ohayou. What are we doing today?"

"Question," Daisuke said, "why are you and a bird so friendly?"

"Oh, him? I found him a few months ago with a broken wing. While he couldn't fly, I took care of him. He hangs around a lot. I didn't expect him to find me, but I guess he really likes me. Or at least my food."

"Hmm, interesting," the goggleheaded boy said. "Speaking of food, where can we get some? I doubt that piece of bread will be enough of a breakfast for all four of us."

"Five if you include this guy." Takeru pointed to the bird, who hopped onto his out-stretched finger, thinking it was supposed to be a perch. "He tends to eat a lot for a bird." He shook the animal off his finger. The bird, now deprived of his finger perch, went back to the boy's shoulder.

"What about that soup kitchen you go to?" Hikari said. She had woken up when Daisuke had mentioned breakfast.

"I don't like to bother them too much, but if you'd like, we can."

"I don't know about you, but I'd rather not turn dwn free food. Let's go!" Miyako ordered, marching out the door. Daisuke trotted behind her.

"We'd better follow. I doubt they know where they're going," Hikari said. She made a beeline towards the door.

"You sure? The three of you have been following me for a while; you should know where it is by now," Takeru protested.

"They're weird that way. That's why I like them. It's funny." She reached the door and grasped the handle. "Oh, watch this. Three…two…one…"

She opened the door just as the duo made their way up the steps into the camper. "How do we get there?" they asked in unison.

"Amazing. You know them too well," he chuckled. "Alright, follow me."

He led them over the hill, past his former home, across a field filled with dirt and random debris, and into the small town. After they passed a few buildings, he stopped and sniffed the air.

"What's wrong?" Hikari asked. She didn't like the worried scowl Takeru had on at the moment. She preferred to see him smiling without a care in the world.

"I'm not sure…" He trailed off.

"See, he is paranoid!" Daisuke exclaimed, a little too loudly. A few people stared at him after his outburst.

"Don't embarrass us, idiot. Don't forget, we're Second Children. We don't need excess attention." Miyako said, hitting him on the head for his stupidity.

"Well," Takeru interrupted, "let's see what's down the street and around the corner, shall we? It should be the soup kitchen." Without waiting for the others, he started walking.

'Something's not right,' Hikari thought to herself. She went to catch up, the others not too far behind. They caught up and turned the corner. Hikari was right next to Takeru. She saw his eyes widen in shock just before he started sprinting down the street. She tried her best to follow, but she wasn't very athletic. The street was long and she found her breath coming in short gasps and her legs were heavy. She wanted to stop, but the blonde showed no sign of slowing down. Finally, she was forced to stop.

"Hikari-chan!" Daisuke and Miyako came running up. Daisuke played soccer with the other children in the area and by himself, so he didn't look tired. Miyako was breathing hard, but didn't look too bad.

They stopped and waited for Hikari to recover, then jogged down the rest of the street. They were mindful of Hikari's inability to run for a long period of time. The soup kitchen should've been close to the corner at the end of the street. As they ran, Hikari drew in air through her nose. The air smelled faintly of smoke. At first, she thought it was her imagination, but the smell grew stronger as they continued down the road.

They turned the corner and stopped in their tracks. They covered their noses and mouths to block the suffocating air from getting into their lungs. Their wide, surprised and horrified eyes fell on Takeru, who stood in front of the burning building. The tattered sign, burning along with the building, read 'Soup Kitchen,' until it was black and unreadable.

--

Like it? Hate it? Well, if you hate it, don't read it. But either way, tell me what you think!

-Birdy


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